Please Smile Again
by Saigon238
Summary: AU. White Light Dance Studio. Will the ice melt?


Right. I have to sort some things out here. The first one had a really messed up draft of their phone conversation, and I forgot to delete it. So, sorry for you having to read some nonsense for a while. And now I just checked it through, and I found that I had a lot of mistakes in this one as well, so I'm editing it (again. There's something wrong with my Microsoft Word.)

Thanks for the reviews as well :) You're all very nice.

* * *

"No, no, no! This just isn't working, Hitsugaya-kun," Ukitake sighed exasperatedly at the white-haired teenager in front of him. "You're talented, and your technique is great, but it's like you're a dancing block of ice!"

He sighed again. He was at the end of his wits with this kid, having burnt through three partners in just one month. That had to be a first in his entire life as a dance teacher. Not even Shunsui, one of his best friends and the media-dubbed _Player of Ballroom_ could have beaten this record.

"You can't keep borrowing Rangiku-san, not with the National Championships so close. Ichimaru and she need to practice. And you need a new permanent partner."

Hitsugaya fought the urge to roll his eyes. Honestly, how many times had he had this conversation with Ukitake-sensei? He folded his arms and said, "Well then, who's my new partner going to be?" in his usual cool, nonchalant tone.

Somebody tapped on the door softly. "Come in," Ukitake called out. A young, stately woman walked into his office, her hair tied back in her customary braid. "Ah, Retsu!"

"Hi, Juushiro. I've brought her. Come on in, Hinamori-san," Unohana said gently.

Hitsugaya glanced at the new girl from the corner of his eye. She was petite and small, with black hair tied up in a bun. Her hands were clasped behind her back and she looked a little nervous. She was wearing a cherry red cardigan and ballroom skirt. _She seems nice, but perhaps a little too shy for Latin ballroom dancing. But at least she has fashion sense._ He suppressed a small shudder at the thought of the atrocious clothing his previous partner had worn. Orange and purple did not go well together.

Hinamori looked briefly at her future partner. She knew him from some dance magazines. Hitsugaya Toushiro, _The Ice Prince._ This was the first time she had seen him up close. He was short for their age, even though he was one year older, but still slightly taller than her. And, she realised with a start, he had white hair. Not that it didn't suit him. _He's okay, but maybe a bit too unemotional_._ No wonder he's called The Ice Prince._

Large brown eyes suddenly caught sharp teal ones. Hinamori's heart suddenly jerked involuntarily. She wasn't expecting to see eyes of that colour, like ice. And that piercing stare frightened her. It was like she was being x-rayed. _This was a person who could have played the part of a ruthless killer very well in the Academy if he was in the Drama department_, she thought. All in all, he was an intimidating person, regardless of his height. Or rather, lack of it.

"Ah, welcome, Hinamori-san, to White Light Dance Studio. I hope you enjoy your time here with us," Ukitake stood up from behind his desk and bowed. Hinamori bowed back. "It's a pleasure to be here, Ukitake-san."

Ukitake swiftly glanced at his rebellious pupil, sending him a silent message. Hitsugaya stiffened and bowed slightly, only a dip of his head. Ukitake sighed inwardly, _when will he learn some manners?_

"Now if you'll excuse us, we'll be going to my office now Juushiro," Unohana smiled and said in her usual gentle tone. "Come, Hinamori-san." The small girl bowed again and followed her mentor out the door, closing it quietly behind her.

"And now you have it, that's your new partner," Ukitake smiled, obviously very pleased with his choice. Hitsugaya just raised an eyebrow at him. "What do you say to a pro-am partnership?" Ukitake continued.

"What?" Hitsugaya was surprised. _A pro-am partnership? How am I supposed to compete in the Nationals as a professional if my partner isn't up to the standard?_

"Don't worry; Hinamori-san may be an amateur, but she is extraordinarily talented for ballroom, both Standard and Latin. She graduated early with honours from the Academy of Performing Arts. Just like you, really," Ukitake mused, "Your dancing styles are rather similar to each other's, so you should be able to get along well."

"Hmph. I'm going to have to see for myself about that. She may be talented, but she might not be cooperative," Hitsugaya stated coldly and walked out the door. Ukitake frowned slightly. _He just had to burst my happy bubble_.

_I hope that she _is_ cooperative. I have absolutely no intention of having another partner like Kobayashi. _Hitsugaya suppressed another shudder as he walked down the corridor to the changing rooms. Kobayashi Ayame was his partner a few months ago, undoubtedly one of the more talented of her age and yet one of the least cooperative with him. They argued constantly and she always blamed him whenever they came anything less than second in competitions. _Oh whatever. That Hinamori girl didn't seem anything like that baka-onna so I suppose it'll be fine._

_

* * *

_

"Hinamori-san, take a seat." Unohana gestured to one of the chairs in front of her desk. Hinamori obediently sat down, but not before looking around the office. It was a lot different from Ukitake's one, this was more feminine, with pressed flowers and paintings adorning the walls. There were also some photographs of ballet dancers, most of which seemed surprisingly familiar.

"Yes, those are photographs that were taken when I was still part of the Tokyo Ballet," Unohana laughed, breaking her train of thought. Hinamori smiled. It wasn't everyday that you got to meet an ex-principal dancer of that ballet company Tokyo Ballet. They took nobody but the best of the generation.

"Well, back to business," Unohana walked around her desk and sat down in her chair. "Your partnership with Hitsugaya-kun will be a pro-am one."

Hinamori's mind jerked into focus. _Wait, a pro-am one? So he's a professional?_ Unohana must have seen the confusion on her face, because she smiled slightly and continued.

"You must be thinking why on earth Hitsugaya-kun would be a professional," she said. Hinamori nodded. "Hitsugaya-kun was a special case because he was a dance prodigy from a very young age. He became the youngest professional ballroom dancer in the nation two years ago."

Hinamori was awed. She had no idea that that person was one of the _best_ ballroom dancers of their age. She had only known that her future partner was a good ballroom dancer, but not a _prodigy_. Unohana smiled at her reaction, "You hadn't known that, had you?" Hinamori nodded again.

Her mentor's smile faded a little. "Hitsugaya-kun hasn't had a proper partner for almost a year. Ever since Aoki Mai, his first and best partner, left for medical school, he's lost all the fire that he used to have."

The petite dancer was surprised. _That icy guy used to have _fire_? How can that be possible? He's just like an ice statue!_

"He's almost like ice nowadays. Cold and unfeeling. All the temporary partners that he'd worked with hadn't lasted a month," Unohana's smile disappeared completely. "You wouldn't believe how hard we've worked to get him a partner. That is, until you came up."

Hinamori nodded. She had a similar case too. Her old instructor had thrown lots of partners at her, but none of the pairings worked out. There was always something _wrong_ about them that made it impossible for her to dance with. So she joined White Light Dance Studio to try and find another partner that would eventually work out. And apparently, she's met her future dance buddy.

Unohana continued, "Lately, he had been borrowing Ichimaru Gin's partner, Matsumoto Rangiku. But because they needed to practice for the upcoming championships, Hitsugaya-kun's partnerless again. And ballroom dancing can't exist with just one person," she looked pointedly at Hinamori.

"There's something different about you. I believe that you could be able to return Hitsugaya to his old self, and you can take both of you to even farther heights in the dance world," Unohana's smile returned, "Of course, it's only a guess. But try not to let me down, okay?"

"I'll try my best, Unohana-sensei," Hinamori promised. She thought back to Hitsugaya's cold teal eyes. _Somewhere, beneath all that iciness, there's a small spark of passion. And my job is to blow on that spark to make it burn brightly again._

"What do you think, Retsu? Are they going to be able to get along with each other?" Ukitake asked anxiously after Hinamori had left.

His wife sighed and said, "I don't know. It's all up to them for now. We can only watch from the sides."

* * *

"Oi, Toushiro. You got another partner?" Ichigo asked as Hitsugaya walked over to his locker.

"Yes, and what would that have to do with you, Kurosaki?" he replied. "You're only here for a few more weeks anyway."

The orange-haired teen shrugged. "So what? I'm still here for now. I just hope that she lasts for a bit longer. She seems nice."

Hitsugaya snorted. "You say that everybody seems nice."

"Yea, but ya really should give them more of a chance," Ichimaru piped up.

"Shut up, Ichimaru. Your dance partner is your _girlfriend_ so obviously you get along well." Hitsugaya snapped as he walked out the changing room for his first practice session with his new partner. _Let's see if she's any better than the last._

_

* * *

_

"Ooh, so you're Toushiro's new partner?" asked a very excited Rangiku, her golden curls bouncing.

"Yeah. Nice to meet you all," Hinamori bowed politely, and was clapped on the back by Rukia.

"Drop the formality already! Welcome to the White Light family, girl!" Rukia grinned. "I'm Rukia, and that bubble-head is Rangiku."

Rangiku pouted and said, "Hey, I'm not a bubble-head!" Rukia rolled her eyes.

"That's Isane, one of our lyrical dancers, she's here for a trial," Rukia pointed at a tall woman with short platinum hair, but with two long braids lying on her back, "and that person over there near the lockers is Nemu, Chinese folk, been here for longer than most of us, except Rangiku." Nemu looked around and saw Hinamori, who smiled and waved. Nemu smiled back slightly and returned to combing her hair. Rukia continued, "I'm a breakdancer and Rangiku's ballroom, Latin speciality."

"I didn't know that there were breakdancing classes here," Hinamori commented.

Rukia shrugged. "There aren't, really. Ichigo and I are the only ones around here who actually does anything to do with popular culture. And even then, Ichigo's only here for a few more weeks. He lives in America, you see. I did too, until nii-sama brought me back here." Hinamori nodded.

"We're going to get along sooooo well!" squealed Rangiku, enveloping the smaller girl in a suffocating hug. "I was Chibi-chan's partner for a while, so if you got any problems with him, I'd be happy to help! If he's mean to you, I'll get Gin to dye his hair blue!" She paused for a while. "Or pink, or maybe even lime-green..."

Hinamori grinned. She felt at home already.

* * *

"Sorry I'm late, Hitsugaya-kun!"

The white haired prodigy looked up from his watch. "About time," he said coldly at his partner. Her hair was immaculate, not a strand out of place, but she was breathing heavily, as if she'd ran all the way up from the changing rooms.

"It won't happen again," she assured him.

Hitsugaya sighed and walked up to her, looking up and down. Hinamori blushed slightly and felt something like butterflies fluttering in her stomach. _Hey, hey, calm down! This isn't the first time a new partner's done this. It's natural._

"Good posture," Hitsugaya commented, "Better than most of my old ones."

"Thanks," Hinamori muttered. _Did he talk like this all the time? It's so cold it's like it's going to_ _snow!_

Just as she was caught off-guard in her thoughts, she was suddenly pushed into an American-style tango by Hitsugaya. "Show me what you got," was all he said.

"Huh?" Hinamori replied dumbly, not comprehending what was going on. She was about to continue when Hitsugaya put a finger to her lips and hissed softly, "Don't talk. Don't think. Just dance."

Their heads were so close together that their foreheads were touching. His hand was on the back of her head and keeping her in that closed position. Muscle memory kicked in and she placed her hand on his back. _One, two, three, four_ – she walked away from him, only to be roughly spun back to face him. _Side basic, fan, dip_. Hinamori stepped away, teasingly motioning for him to come for her, if he dared. Oh he dared all right, advancing up to her within seconds. Then they circled each other, her hand tensed on the front of his shirt, enough to both keep him close and to keep him away.

Her breath caught in her throat as their eyes met. His blue-green eyes were sharp, even more prominent now than it was before. The light caught in his eyes, causing them to glitter almost dangerously. _Lunge. Prep. Spin. Lunge_.

She hooked her right leg about his left, letting him lift and spin her, then dipping her deeply. There was something different about this dance, and yet she couldn't quite place it. When she came back up, she found her face so close to his, their foreheads pressed together. Close enough to kiss. Another fan, then a half spin so that her back was pressed to his chest. _Grapevine, kick, half-turn. Side basic. Spin away, lunge_. His hand kept her anchored to him.

She turned, pushing him away lightly. As he turned, presenting his back to her, she came up behind him, her leg up and resting on his hip, her cheek resting on his shoulder as a hand stroked down his arm, hands intertwining. Before he could turn in her embrace, she pushed him away. He pulled her back to him almost immediately, undoubtedly proclaiming that he was the one in charge. Twisting and turning around the studio furiously, the tension between the two rose until it was almost suffocating.

It ended with her draped across his body, her legs twined with his. His hand was splayed across her stomach, her arm hooked around his neck.

The music ended there, and Hitsugaya brought her back up slowly, and disentangled himself from her. She had the fire and passion of the tango, he knew it. She showed it through her dancing. But her technique could use a little work. She didn't seem willing to do deep lunges and dips, and her twists were a little jerky at times. But overall, she was outstanding for an amateur. He looked at her. She was flushed, and some strands of hair had come undone from her bun. She was breathing heavily, but her eyes sparkled. He was drawn in by those eyes, so full of life and fun.

He hadn't even noticed that he was staring at her until she spoke up. "What do you think, Hitsugaya-kun?" Her voice was soft and silky, almost musical, unlike those high school girls with silly high-pitched voices that came just to ogle at guys.. _Wait, since when have I ever cared about how people's voices sound?_ He shook his head slightly. _Get back on task, Toushiro. You have a Nationals competition to win._

"You are a good dancer, and you possess the needed emotion and dramatic ability, but," he said coolly as her eyes lit up, "your technique could be refined a bit more." He walked past her, picked up his jacket and headed for the door. He didn't look back once at her, apart from turning his head slightly to say, "I'll see you for another session tomorrow morning."

Hinamori sighed. _I'll never work this guy out. He's so… cryptic._ She collected her dance bag from the doorway and walked out as well.

* * *

That night, Hinamori thought a bit about her dance with Hitsugaya earlier.

_There's just something off about his dancing._ _It's like dancing with a robot, an empty shell._ _There's no emotion in the dance. Only the appearance, the outer form of the tango. No wonder he's called the Ice Prince._

She tossed and turned, She was still deep in thought about his dancing even as she was falling asleep. _He's just so strange. How can somebody dance the tango without passion? I mean, the tango is about passion, isn't it? Without it, the dance is incomplete._ _the tango, well, _isn't_ the tango._

She decided that she would teach Hitsugaya how to dance with emotions again.

* * *

Hitsugaya was flicking through a photo album in his room. The one that had pictures of him and his first partner together. Aoki Mai. To put it simply, he missed her, although that would be a severe understatement.. Back then, he felt almost _betrayed. _He had wanted to stop her from going, but he was too proud to do so. Ever since she had left for medical college, he hadn't stopped thinking about her. He only wanted to dance with her. To him, there was no other real partner except for Mai.

_Flashback_

"_Gah! We almost had it!" exclaimed Mai._

"_Yeah. So close… I can almost feel the intensity," Hitsugaya agreed._

"_Ha, the only person who can 'feel' intensity is you!" Mai teased._

"_Shut up," he grumbled. Of course, he didn't really mind her teasing.."_

"_Hey, I was just joking. Come on, let's do it one more time!" Mai laughed. He loved her laugh. It was like bells tinkling in the airmade everything seem better the second he heard it.._

_It was the beginning of their dance career, not amateurs yet, but soon. They were learning how to dance the tango. They had almost got it, their technique was great, and they had the passion. They were positively beaming and their eyes had laughter in them. Each turn, each lunge was flawless, and it was because of each other._

_Flashback ends. _

Hitsugaya sighs softly as he flips the page, staring at smiling face after smiling face.. Ecstasy after their first big win at Nationals, relief at passing the semi-finals, and…

"Hmm?" He saw his phone's monitor flicker, signalling an incoming call. He flipped open the cover and put it to his ear.

"Yo, Toushiro," came a very familiar laugh.

"Mai? Is that you?" Hitsugaya asked, pleasantly surprised to hear her voice. She hadn't called him in a month, and it felt great to talk with her again.

"Baka-mono. Of course it's me! Who did you think it was, some sort of sales-dude?" she laughed again. Hitsugaya couldn't help but smile slightly at the memory of their old verbal spars.

"Well, what are you calling for?" he asked. Getting back on-topic.

"I heard you got another new partner. You're not going to throw her away after a month are you? The Nationals are coming up _fast_ and god knows you need a partner."

Hitsugaya sighed. "Geez, you sound just like Ukitake-sensei sometimes. But still, it feels different from dancing with you."

A crackle of static passed through the speaker. Possibly a sigh. "Toushiro. I'm almost a graduate now. I'm not going to go back to competitive ballroom. Accept it. Hinamori's your partner now. And she's going to suffer if you don't give it your all in the championship." She paused. "I've seen her in some magazines. She's a real rising star in the dance world. You're lucky to have her."."

"Yeah, but –"

"No buts! You're going to put some passion in that dancing, and you're going to win! You hear me?" She was getting impatient.

"Yes, I hear you… But how, when I know that I can't dance like that anymore?" He was tired of constantly not getting the right emotions out. He just couldn't. Not if his partner wasn't Mai.

"Toushiro!" the voice emanating from the phone snapped, "How do you _know_ you can't dance like that? You haven't even tried since I left! Stop being such a self-centred grass and stop holding your emotions back! Argh, I'm not even going to bother myself with you anymore. Unless you go to that championship and bring back that trophy, I'm not going to speak to you. Bye." With that, she cut the line.

"Wait, Mai. Mai!" he yelled into the phone, "Geez, she's even worse than Ukitake."

Hitsugaya chucked the phone onto the bed and fell into it with a disgruntled sigh. Maybe Mai was right. He had known for ages, but refused to accept it. But that small voice in the back of his mind kept nagging him. had to start moving on. Maybe, just maybe, if he let go, he might be able to get that passion back.

"Shut up," he mumbled into his pillow.

* * *

The next day at the dance studio, they were practicing the Viennese waltz. A Standard dance. He hadn't seen her dance anything from Standard yet, so it was a good time for her to showcase her skills. And the Viennese was his speciality.

_Her dancing really is something else._ He glanced at her quickly, and looked away. Whether it was in Standard or Latin, to put it simply, she had the talent. Her neck was stretched long, and each step she took was gliding and graceful. He dimly remembered Ukitake telling him something about a frame and a painting. _"You are the frame. She is the painting in the frame. Your job is to show her off to everybody, and to compliment her in all aspects."_

If that was real, she then truly was a beautiful painting.

He glanced at her swiftly again, and turned back. She was smiling, a bright smile, and her eyes, although not sparkling like yesterday, were alight with a soft glow. In fact, when she was dancing, she seemed to glow all around. It was almost like she was some ethereal being from heaven or some fairytale from a kid's story. He'd only ever seen it once, and that was when Ukitake was dancing with Unohana. But then, they were something different altogether.

_There's something missing in this dance. _Hitsugaya then suddenly thought that to compliment her even more, he was going to have to dance better. He winced inwardly at the thought of somebody being better than him at the Viennese waltz, but there was always competition in the world of dance. _But how? _

He pulled himself up higher, and took gentler strides. Instead of leading with absolute authority, he let her have some say in the directing of the movements. His grip on her turned from being a metal clasp into a firm hold. Hinamori felt this slight change, and chanced a look at him as well. His eyes were no longer those icy teal chips that she saw at first, but now had a softer look to them, a dancing blue fire flickering in the depths somewhere. She smiled to herself. Albeit slowly, he was learning.

* * *

"Hey, Hitsugaya-kun?" Hinamori asked after their dance session.

Hitsugaya didn't look up from packing his bag. "Hmm?"

"Would you like to come with me to the new coffee shop that just opened? You know, the one just across the street?" she offered shyly. She flinched slightly at her overly hopeful tone. Hastily, so as not to sound too suspicious, she added, "Of course, if you don't want to come it's fine, I can always ask Rukia-san or Rangiku-san to –"

"No, I'll be happy to come," he looked up at her, and, a surprise not only to her but also to himself, smiled slightly. _Well, I have nothing to do today anyway._

"Thank you, Hitsugaya-kun! So I'll see you there in about 15 minutes, okay?" She smiled back at him, not one of her exhilarated grins after a good dance, but a sincere, sweet one that set his heart thumping like crazy and butterflies fluttering around in his stomach.

"Erm… okay," he replied, feeling slightly awkward..

He walked out the door calmly, but deep down inside he was in an emotional turmoil. _What is this feeling? Why am I so nervous? Need to calm down, need to calm down_, he repeated over and over in his head.

* * *

"Hi, Hitsugaya-kun! You're early."

Hitsugaya turned to face Hinamori who had just walked in through the door. She wasn't wearing her usual pink cherry red cardigan, but one that was a darker plum purple. _That suits her too, although it would look better in lilac,_ he thought absently.

They ordered their drinks: a caramel frappe for Hinamori, and a black coffee for Hitsugaya. Hinamori She made a face at Hitsugaya's choice.

"Do you actually _like_ that flavour?" she asked with a small frown. _Frowns don't work for her_, he thought.

"No, not really, but for some reason, I think that black coffee suits me best." He took a sip of the steaming bitter coffee.

"Why?" came the innocent question.

"The bitter taste chases away unnecessary thoughts," he said simply over the rim of his cup.

"What are the unnecessary thoughts?" Hinamori asked again.

"What is this? Twenty Questions?" Hitsugaya sighed and put down the cupmug, watching the steam float up into the air.. "They're the ones that distract me from dancing and her."

_Her? Who's "her"? _Hinamori wondered about whether or not she should ask him for more details, but decided not to. _He's probably already miffed enough about my questions anyway. Besides, he'll tell when he's ready._

"Well, enough about me, time for you," he changed the subject. "Why do you like caramel frappes?"

"Actually, I like all types frappes," she said matter-of-factly, listening to the ice clink gently against the glass, swirling the cream around. "It reminds me that everything, even the coldest, iciest things, could have a sweet and sentimental side." She looked at him with her chocolate doe-eyes.

Hitsugaya suspected that there was a second meaning to that answer, but decided not to ask further. He would find out soon anyway.

They both finished their drinks and left in silence, going their separate ways.

* * *

"Rangiku-san?"

"Harloo, darling! How are you doing with chibi-chan?" A very loud and excited voice emanated from the speaker.

"He's okay, I guess," Hinamori started hesitantly.

"Oh come on, tell! What's been going on?" Rangiku's voice became a bit more serious. "Is he being mean to you? I have the hair dye at the ready. Which one do you think he would look better in, electric blue or lime green?"

"I really don't think that would be necessary, Rangiku-san, we're getting along okay," Hinamori laughed, then added as an afterthought, "Well, we've started dancing, but it's been a bit off."

"You mean, he's dancing like a robot."

"Yeah."

Rangiku's voice became thoughtful. "It's probably about Mai-chan."

Hinamori was more than a bit surprised at this. She had heard from Unohana about her, but not anything specific concerning her partner. "Mai-chan? You mean, Aoki Mai? His first partner?"

Rangiku laughed. "What other Mai would I be talking about, silly?"

"There are a lot of Mai's in the world."

"Well, I'm talking about that one."

"So, what about her?"

"I think it would be better if you asked chibi-chan himself about it. I don't know all the details.

"Ok then, thanks. I got to go now, so see you tomorrow!"

Rangiku's voice became cheery and bubbly again. That tone was starting to get a bit on Hinamori's nerves. "Byeee!"

_I really need to get earplugs._

* * *

_Great, now who is it?_ Hitsugaya thought, irritated that he had been interrupted twice by Kurosaki and three times by Ukitake. He flipped open the phone cover. Surprisingly, it was Hinamori. _What's she doing, calling me? She never calls me._

"Yes, Hinamori?" he asked coolly.

"Erm… Hitsugaya-kun, I was wondering about the tango that we did yesterday…" Her voice sounded uncomfortable, and trailed off. Hitsugaya raised an eyebrow.

"What about it?"

"Well, erm," she sounded really uncomfortable now, "why don't you put any feeling into it?"

Hitsugaya was surprised at this unexpected question. He knew the answer, but he didn't want to share it.

Hinamori noticed this silence, and added hurriedly, "It's ok if you don't want to talk about it, but since we're partners, I thought that it would be best for both of us if I knew more about you."

Hitsugaya understood. Mutual respect and understanding was the key foundation to any successful partnership, whether it was in dance or not. _There's nothing to lose in telling her,_ he reasoned.

"Very well, if you must know… It's because of my first partner."

Hinamori replied curiously, "Aoki-san?" Hitsugaya flinched at the mention of her name. He still felt upset about her leaving. "What about her?" Hinamori continued to ask.

"She was more than just a dance partner. Our relationship extended beyond the dance floor," Hitsugaya started. _Whoa, slow down, Toushiro. You've only known Hinamori for two days and you're telling her about your love life?_ "When I danced with her, it felt…good. But when she left for medical school, I didn't want to dance with anybody else. That's all…" _Damn this, she won't understand…_

"Ah…"

Hitsugaya froze. "Wait. You _understand?_"

"Of course I do, Hitsugaya-kun. I was like that a while ago too," _She was like that too? But she seems so…enthusiastic._ "I got over it after a while. But the point is that she's not your partner any more, isn't it?"

That sentence hit Hitsugaya like a train and washed out all other thoughts. It was the first time that anybody else apart from Mai herself that had said that. Mai and Hinamori were both right. He had to dance. Not just on the outside, but on the inside as well. It was different hearing it from Hinamori. She just had that ability to influence you with that innocent and straightforward tone. Hitsugaya allowed himself the smallest of smiles.

"Hinamori…" he began.

"Yes?"

"Thanks." That was the first genuine 'thank you' that he had given in a long time. It felt strangely satisfying.

Hinamori was confused. "Thanks? For what? I didn't do anything."

Hitsugaya's smile widened slightly. "You made me realise that I can't dwell on the past anymore. You are my partner now. Not her. Sorry that I haven't given dancing my all. I'll get better, I promise." And surprisingly, he meant it. His heart wanted to dance again.

"You're welcome, Hitsugaya-kun."

"Just call me Toushiro," he replied.

"Ok then, Toushiro," she tried out the name. "So, dancing again tomorrow?" she asked.

"Alright. See you then."

"Bye!" she said cheerfully.

Hitsugaya snapped his mobile phone shut. It was time to turn over a new leaf. He was stupid not to have noticed earlier. Mai's feelings for him had long since diminished. His feelings had disappeared too. He was open to feel again. And he knew where to start.

* * *

"No. No, no, no, no!" The pitch of her voice was rising with every 'no'.

Rangiku sighed. _Geez, Momo-chan is just so stubborn._ "Momo-chan, this is a _Latin_ costume. Of course it's going to be more revealing! And you're an amateur already, you should be _used_ to this!"

"Yes, but –"

"No buts! I'm not letting you out of that closet until you've changed into it!"

"Rangiku-saaaaaan!" Hinamori cried in despair, muffled by the closet doors.

A few minutes later, Hinamori emerged, her arms folded resolutely and blushing crimson.

"Oh. My. God. Momo-chan," Rangiku gasped. She looked _gorgeous_.

"You look hot," Rukia laughed. Hinamori blushed even more.

"Great job, Hakumo-chan, wonderful as ever," Unohana said to the seamstress. Hakumo beamed at the praise and rushed towards Hinamori. "Hinamori-san, unfold your arms please," her mentor said gently.

Hinamori slowly and reluctantly let her arms hang loose at her sides. Everybody gaped at her dress. Their resident seamstress and Unohana's best friend had really outdone herself. Even the usually stoic Nemu showed signs of surprise.

The dress was a beautiful ruby red one-piece. It was halter-topped and showed off her pale narrow shoulders. There were clusters of tiny rhinestones near the top and they gradually spread out until there was almost none when the fabric reached the hip. Instead, it shimmered in the light through tiny flecks of glitter. It ended just below the knees, but was very form-fitting and had a long slit up one leg, up to mid-thigh. But her back, her _back_ was almost completely exposed, save for one, just one strap crossing her back and the halter neck strap to keep everything in place. The ruffled skirt began just slightly above the hip. Frankly, it looked very flattering on her, and accentuated her height.

"Stop fidgeting!" Hakumo scolded her good-naturedly while making adjustments, "I spent forever sewing on all those rhinestones, and you look great in this dress, so I don't want to ruin it by your carelessness!"

"Hey, Toushiro, isn't that your partner?" asked Hisagi.

_Damn, it's the guys!_ Hinamori automatically went into panic mode, she did _not_ want them to see her in this outfit. She saw them approaching in the full-length mirror, and prayed that they wouldn't make any stupid comments. _Calm down, deep breaths_...

"One word, Toushiro. Hot." Ichigo laughed. "Ne, Rukia?" Rukia just slapped him lightly.

"Ran-chan, ya shouldn't use such methods!" Ichimaru scolded lightly.

"Bah, shut up, Gin," Rangiku giggled, "How else would I have been able to get her in this?"

Hitsugaya looked up and down at her. He hadn't ever noticed how pale her skin was until now. And how slender she actually was, like a willow branch. And her eyes, he smiled to himself in amusement, were terrified, stunned and embarrassed all at the same time. But anyhow, she looked great in that dress.

Hinamori felt intimidated by that searching, intense gaze that seared across her body. It was a frightening sensation, like she was being taken apart, piece by piece, and examined, scrutinized. She felt surprised that his stare hadn't left burn marks.

She was too busy thinking about his gaze that she didn't notice that he was right next to her.

"You look nice."

Hinamori jerked back into the real world.

"Thanks." That word came out stronger and more confident than she actually felt.

"I suppose Matsumoto forced you in this using her closet method?" he asked.

Hinamori looked at him dumbly. "How did you know?"

"How do you think I got to change into my first ever Latin costume?" he smirked. _He shouldn't be allowed to smirk, _Hinamori thought.

Unohana glanced at Ukitake and nodded. They started shooing everybody out of the room, and closed the door behind them quietly.

"Eh? Where did everybody go?" Hinamori asked confusedly when she noticed the sudden silence.

_Playing matchmaker again, most probably. Kyoraku's bad habits have really rubbed off on both of them._ "I don't know. Knowing them the way I do, the door's probably locked. And they won't let us out for another hour, so let's just count this as another practice session then, shall we?"

"Alright then, but let me just change out of this first."

As she walked back into the closet and closed the door, Hitsugaya felt strangely dissatisfied. He had wanted to see her dance in that dress. _Wait, having her dance in her normal practice stuff is fine. But then why do I feel so disappointed? _ He shook those thoughts away and started warming up.

* * *

"Much better, Hitsugaya-kun!"

Hinamori was panting heavily after another challenging tango. Hitsugaya was also out of breath for the first time in quite a long while. It was interesting to see how emotions could influence the dance so much. It was intense, and it seemed like a battle was waging between the two. No, not only the two of them, but one in each of them as well between their emotions.

"You're getting it!" She beamed, and Hitsugaya felt absurdly happy.

"Thanks," was all he could say.

All through the dance, it was like one side of him was saying "Love her" and the other side was saying "I can't". Hinamori felt the extreme change in him, and she could see the light in his eyes after the dance. She hadn't wanted the dance to end, but like all dances, it had to eventually. She wanted to be close to him, wanted to dance with him forever. It had been a while since she had ever felt this way. It was almost like an obsession, and her inner battle was almost identical to his.

"Do you think we're ready for the Nationals?" he asked her suddenly.

She was surprised. It was the first time that he had ever asked for her opinion.

"What do you think?" she asked back.

"I was asking you the question," he replied, a slim eyebrow arched.

She thought about it, and said, "I think we're ready."

And he smiled. The first genuine smile that she had seen from him. She thought that it looked great on him, and smiled back. Without thinking, she walked up to him and swiftly kissed him on the cheek.

_Oh great, what did I do?_ She thought, shocked at her own behaviour. Blushing so much that she looked like a tomato, she sprinted out the door and down the corridor.

…_What just happened? _He was still stunned by her action and instinctively raised a hand up to touch the place where her lips touched his.

* * *

_You idiot! What were you thinking, just walking up to him and kissing him?_ Hinamori was still mentally reprimanding herself as she walked through the park on her way down the street to her apartment. _Are you crazy? Who knows what he thinks of me now! I'm probably going to get kicked out of the studio soon, I know it!_

The sky was darkening above her head, and storm clouds were gathering. _Stupid weather forecast. It said that it wasn't going to rain today._ A few drops of rain landed on the ground in front of her, and in a matter of seconds, started to pour like someone had just turned the tap on in the sky.

She started running to the nearest shade, underneath a tree. Her jacket was soaked through, and felt cold and clammy to the touch. She shivered slightly. Raindrops still fell through the gaps in the leaves, and Hinamori was just about to start moving again before the rain got any worse when she saw an umbrella obscure her view of the sky.

_Huh? Who is it?_

A horribly familiar voice sounded."Are you okay?"

Hinamori's eyes widened when she saw who it was, and automatically blushed. It was Hitsugaya, his cerulean eyes creased with concern.

"Ye-Yeah, I'm fine," she managed to stammer out. _Oh great, the last person on Earth that I want to see at the moment._

"Come on, I'll walk you home." Hitsugaya offered.

"N-No, It's ok."

Hitsugaya raised an eyebrow. "Okay? In this weather? You have got to be kidding."

_Wonderful, he must think of me as an idiot now._ Hinamori blushed even more, if possible.

When she didn't answer, he said, "I'm not taking no for an answer, you got that?" Still no answer. "Let's go." Hinamori nodded mutely and they walked out into the torrential rainstorm.

They walked to Hinamori's house in silence, not a single word passed between them. This was the closest in distance that they had been, excluding the times while dancing.

Hinamori's eyes were deliberately avoiding his. _Oh great, oh great, oh great…_ she thought in despair. _This is sooooo embarrassing._

Hitsugaya was staring straight ahead. He knew that she didn't want to look at him, so he simply made her job easier. _Are all girls like this?_ he mused. _If it's about _that_ then I've gotten over it a while ago. Apparently, girls are more emotional that guys. I don't think I'll ever understand what goes on in the minds of females._

"I-It's here. Thanks." She said suddenly.

She forced herself to look up at him, and to her embarrassment, seeing him smiling in amusement, most probably at her blushing face. _Now what?_

She smiled back sheepishly, still blushing, and said, "Well, I'll see you tomorrow then," and walked into the building. She could still feel Hitsugaya's teal stare boring into her back, and picked up her pace.

The rain had stopped and rays of sunlight were breaking through the dark cloud cover. Hitsugaya walked home alone and ran through his usual routine: took a shower, had dinner and went to bed.

His last thought before he fell asleep was, _She looks quite cute when she blushes_.

* * *

A few weeks after that 'incident', and very close to Nationals, Hinamori suddenly asked a very unexpected question.

"Toushiro, what do you think of me?"

Hitsugaya didn't know how to answer at all. He had come to think of her as more than a dance partner, more like a friend, and sometimes he even had romantic thoughts about her. They were becoming increasingly common, and sometimes, he had the urge to just say that he loved her. But his self-control and pride were too great for that. He had waited years for Mai, he could wait a little longer for Hinamori. Well, Momo now. _What if I got rejected?_ was the question here. He still didn't know what she thought about him, apart from her blushing almost every time she saw him recently.

She blushed slightly and continued, "I mean, not my dancing, but me as a person in general?"

_Now's as good a time as any._ "You're nice, kind, funny, and, to be honest, amazingly naïve." He stared at her intently, his piercing teal eyes boring into her large chocolate ones.

"What do you mean by me being naïve?" Hinamori asked confusedly. His eyes suddenly clouded over in… pain?

"…I thought that you would have known." He sounded so disappointed that Hinamori felt a little hurt. His eyes were avoiding hers now, staring at her shoulder.

"Known what?" Hitsugaya looked her in the eyes again, smiling sadly, "I thought you would have figured out my feelings for you by now. It's become painfully obvious, not only to you, but also to me. At first I just brushed away the thoughts, but now they keep coming, wave after wave, and I can't stop it! I was only just confronted by Kurosaki a while ago about my relationship with you, and he is the dullest person I have ever met! It's not something I have control over anymore."

He took a few steps closer to her, until they were face to face. "I love you, Hinamori Momo."

Emotions flashed across her chocolate eyes, shock, confusion, and finally, something that he couldn't identify. A small smile graced her face. "You know what? You're sometimes just as naïve as I am," she said.

"Huh?" Hitsugaya couldn't figure it out in time before her lips were on his. "I love you too. Shiro-chan," she whispered.

* * *

"Aaaaand now, for the final dance of the Professional Latin round, theee tango! Our couples are…"

"It's them! It's them!" Rukia said excitedly to Ichigo, her eyes sparkling with anticipation. Ichigo just grinned at her easily. "They'll win this, don't worry. I mean, they've been practicing for so long."

"Go 105 and 103!" somebody yelled, and waved excitedly.

Couple 105, Hitsugaya and Hinamori beamed at Ukitake. Sometimes he could really act like a six-year-old. Couple 103, Ichimaru and Rangiku, also smiled at them, Gin with his usual fox-like grin and Rangiku's eyes alight with excitement.

"Good luck, you two!" Rangiku squealed at them.

"Ran-chan, give them some peace already! We have to start soon," Ichimaru dragged her away from them. "Good luck!" he called back.

Ukitake settled back down into his seat, and was greeted by a smiling Unohana.

"They've really come a long way, ne Retsu?" Ukitake asked happily.

"Yes, they have, Juushiro. Hitsugaya really has changed over these few months," she replied. "Hinamori works wonders with him." _Thank you, Hinamori-san._

"You ready?" Hitsugaya asked her.

"As ready as I'll ever be," she smiled.

Everybody was entranced by the fiery and intense dances that were going on the dance floor, but one pair caught their attention the most. The one that set the air around them crackling with energy and life, the only pro-am partnership out there. Hitsugaya Toushiro, _The Ice Prince_, and Hinamori Momo, the current rising star of the dance world.

Ichimaru and Rangiku couldn't help stealing glances at their "little sister and brother" of the White Light family. They danced incredibly and the emotion, the emotion that emanated from both of them, electrified everybody, setting their hearts thumping wildly.

They danced their hearts out in that final tango, the very same routine that they did on the first day they met each other. Only this time, there was a very big difference. The ice wall had melted, and the statue had become a real man.

* * *

Reviews please? :)


End file.
